In mid-December, an investigation was published about the pastime of British MPs on business trips abroad – with alcohol and “call girls”.
How representatives of the authorities behave on business trips abroad, organized by inter-party parliamentary groups, was told by edition Politico – business trips turn into sex tours.
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak expressed concern over such accusations by British MPs, and the publication details the scheme of official voyages. It looks like this: an APPG (cross-party parliamentary group) is created dedicated to a specific foreign country or countries, and for its activities its members request foreign business trips (often in their spare time from parliament, financed by foreign governments or private companies).
To be fair, many members of parliament who are part of cross-party groups take their jobs seriously. However, there are others who perceive travel as entertainment. For example, one of the ex-deputies of the Conservative Party, during a similar trip, was interested in where to find the nearest brothel, and another, a former member of the government, remained there after the end of an official trip to investigate “interest in women.”
Politico spoke to a foreign diplomat who described how one senior Labor MP, while traveling abroad, showed a fondness for “Russian girls”. Local officials could not intervene because they wanted to retain influence on decision-making in the British Parliament.
Last Tuesday about a similar situation told British newspaper The Times, publishing an article under the headline: “Sex workers met MPs in their hotel during a trip abroad.” According to sources of the publication, during a visit to one of the “dictatorial countries” in the hotel, British deputies were met by workers in the field of sexual services. And while visiting the country, which is an important ally of Britain, a member of parliament was reprimanded for repeatedly courting interns who helped organize the trip. The publication notes that politicians make themselves vulnerable to blackmail because of their behavior abroad.
On Wednesday, a Downing Street spokesman said the British prime minister was aware of “disturbing” media reports of MPs’ behavior that was “clearly of great concern”. He declared:
“The Prime Minister believes MPs must work hard for the community and the vast majority have focused on trying to solve our common problems, whether it’s supporting the most vulnerable, or working to improve schools and make the streets safer.”
At the same time, Downing Street declined to comment on whether Sunak would support the APPG reform, saying that this question should be asked to the leadership of the House of Commons, not the government.
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